The Boxer (chromatic)

THE BOXER
By: Paul Simon
Simon & Garfunkel
Key: C


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I am just a poor boy, 
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though my stor-y's sel-dom told.
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I have squan-dered my re-sis-tance,
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For a poc-ket-ful of mum-bles, 
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such are prom-is-es.
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All lies and jest.
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Still a man hears what he wants to hear
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and dis-re-gards the rest.
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mm, mm, mm, mm, mm, mm, mm, mm, mm, mm,

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When I left my home and my fam-i-ly 
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I was no more than a boy,
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In the com-pan-y of strang-ers,
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In the qui-et of the rail-way sta-tion, 
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Run-nin' scared.  Lay-ing low, 
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seek-ing out the poor-er quar-ters,
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Where the rag-ged peo-ple go.
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Look-in' for the plac-es, 
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on-ly they would know.

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Lie-la-lie, Lie-la-lie la lie la lie
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Lie-la-lie, Lie-la-lie la la la la 
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la la la la lie

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Ask-ing on-ly work-man's wag-es 
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I come look-in' for a job,
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But I get no of-fers,
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Just a come-on from the whores 
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on Sev-enth Ave-n-ue.
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I do de-clare there were times 
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when I was so lone-some,
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I took some com-fort there.

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Lie-la-lie, Lie-la-lie la lie la lie
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Lie-la-lie, Lie-la-lie la la la la 
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la la la la lie

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And I’m lay-ing out my win-ter clothes, 
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and wish-ing I was gone, go-in’ home
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Where the New York Ci-ty win-ters 
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Are-n’t bleed-in’ me, lead-in’ me go-in' home.

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In the clear-ing stands a box-er 
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and a fight-er by his trade,
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And he car-ries the re-mind-ers 
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of ev-‘ry glove that laid him down,
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Or cut him 'til he cried out 
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in his an-ger and his shame,
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"I am leav-ing, I am leav-ing."
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But the fight-er still re-mains.

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Lie-la-lie, Lie-la-lie la lie la lie
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Lie-la-lie, Lie-la-lie la la la la 
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la la la la lie